things you should know

As someone who is struggling

No matter who you are or what your story is, you deserve recovery. I know depending on where you are in recovery the eating disorder might be invalidating you. Even if even a tiny part of you might think something is wrong I beg you to talk to someone. The sooner you get help the better. The number one way the eating disorder is able to "survive" is by hiding. And no matter where you are in your journey or what others say this is your story and your recovery matters. Also please look at the facts at the bottom and the "more resources" page for more help.

Always remember you are way more than your body

As a caregiver for someone who is struggling

Caregiver does not just mean parent- it is another term for loved one. Can be anyone.

I know you are probably shocked. You don't know what to do. You might feel like everything you do is wrong. But it is not.  You looking into this shows you care and want to help. That is huge. Your loved one is either lashing out at you or isolating from you. But it is not them, the eating disorder is doing that. Trust me, your loved one is still there and loves that you want to help. It's just one of the things the eating disorder tries to do is make the person think everyone is against them. There are a few things you can do now that I list on the "how you can help" page. I also talked to one of my caregivers and she suggested I also mention that there is no set amount of time it will take someone to recover. 

 On behalf of the person you care for, Thank you for trying to help.

As someone who just wants to make society more inclusive to those of a different body size an with mental health issues

On behalf of the entire eating disorder community, thank you. One of the hardest things in recovery is people who do not know about eating disorders. As you have probably found out by now, eating disorders love to hide. For all you know, the person next to you could have an eating disorder. Please look at the extra facts and "how you can help" page for more information.

Extra facts you may want to know

• Anorexia and bulimia are not the only eating disorders, there are about 60 though not all are in the DSM-5

• Eating disorders are caused by genetics and environmental causes

• People of all races, nationalities, sexes, sexualities, ages, and general backgrounds can have them

• Recovery can take between a few months to a couple of decades depending on the person

• Eating disorders have been around since before social media

• Eating disorders are often a form of control/self-harm

• There are five stages of recovery- pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance

• Eating disorders do not have a body type or look

• Just because you do not think someone has an eating disorder does not mean they don't (please do not invalidate people)

• There are differences between eating disorders and disordered eating

• Feeding disorders are also a big issue

• There is a symbol that represents eating disorders

• lilac is the national color for eating disorders

• The information on eating disorders are somewhat limited in the DSM-5

• No one knows that they are going to get an eating disorder when they start dieting

• Relationships with an eating disorder are often compared to abusive relationships

• People can be misdiagnosed depending on the information available

• Eating disorders do not just have one cause

All of these facts are things I have learned from therapists throughout my recovery. I have learned all of this from my local hospital as well as The Healing Connection